NREL-AFOSR Workshop, Algal Oil for Jet FuelFuel

Production, Arlington, VA February 19th , 2008

2008

Overview:

Algae Oil to Biofuels

(annotated presentation)

John R. Benemann

Benemann Associates

Walnut Creek, CA, jbenemann @ aol.com

(925) 352 3352

 Abstract – a short history of algae biofuels

biofuels

•Microalgae were first mass cultured on rooftop at MIT during the

early 1950s, first mention of algae biofuels in report of that project.

• Methane from algae studied at U.C. Berkeley during the 1950s,

Initial conceptual process and systems analysis published 1960

• The energy shocks of the 1970s led renewed study of microalgae

biofuels, H2 and methane in combination with wastewater treatment

• From 1980 to 1995, the U.S. DOE-NREL ASP for microalgae oil
production. Initial issue: open ponds vs. closed photobioreactors
The ASP culminated in open pond pilot plant at Roswell, New Mexico
• Algae oil production is still a long-term R&D goal. Like the ASP a
future program should be an open collaboration by researchers
from academia, national laboratories and industry, not inhibited by
concerns about IP or commercial interests.
Not enough vegetable oil
available. Biodiesel plants
now at ~25% capacity,
Æ need new sources
NYT 1/31/07: “Once a Dream Fuel,
Palm Oil May Be an Eco-Nightmare”
Bubbles are H2 Æ

Microalgae biotech could be a huge source of H2 fuel

Jae Edmonds, World Industrial Biotech Congress, 2004
400
Biomass Example of rampant
350
Electrolysis extrapolation... From
300 Coal little bubbles to Exajoules
Gas
250 Oil
EJ/year

Biotechnology
200

150

100

50
Direct biological
production of H2.
0

1990 2005 2020 2035 2050 2065 2080 2095

Optical Photobioreactor for H2 Production (USA, 1977)

Example of not clear on

concept: cannot produce
cheap biofuels in very
expensive bioreactors.
Japanese NEDO-RITE Project 1990-2000

Optical Fiber
Photobioreactors
(~$1,000/m2)
Program was
total failure
Microalgae for CO2 Capture ? : Emiliana huxleyi

Many projects used these algae to abate CO2 emissions

 Large “whitening” in the Atlantic Ocean

(due to coccolithophorids like E. huxleyi]

Another example of not

clear on concept: CaCO3
ppt. with algae leads to CO2
emissions, not capture!
 MICROALGAE DIVERSITY
•30 000 described species (< 10% of estimated)
•11 Divisions divided into 29 classes (vs. 2/12 vascular plants)

 ÅNitzchia

ÅChlorella
Inoculum Tubes First mass culture project

Plastic bag-type
photobioreactors

Roof of MIT Building~ 1950

 Jack Myers and Bessel Kok

Algae Culture from

Laboratory to Pilot

2006, Austin, Tx Plant (Burlew, 1953) 1956, Stanford U.

Prof. Oswald and high rate paddle wheel

mixed ponds at U.C. Berkeley RFS 1976
Open raceway paddle wheel mixed ponds now
used by 98% commercial microalgae production
(Shown: Spirulina farm, Earthrise Co. CA)
 Arthrospira platensis (Spirulina)

Spirulina is easy to culture (high alkalinity

medium and easy to harvest by screens
Spirulina Culture Expansion (Earthrise Farms)
Spirulina Production in India
(Parry Nutraceuticals Ltd. )
Paddle wheels for mixing high rate ponds.
(Mixing at or below 30 cm/sec minimizes energy use)
 Power required for mixing ponds

Mixing power goes up as cube function of velocity

Spirulina Production in China (Hainan]
Current products from
microalgae: nutraceuticals
Spirulina and Haematococcus Ponds
at Cyanotech Corp. in Hawaii
2 MW(e) Power Plant and CO2 Capture
Tower at Cyanotech Corp., Hawaii
Haematococcus pluvialis
Production of red carotenoid
astaxanthin, ~$10 million/ton
(>$100,000/t algae biomass)
 Haematococcus pluvialis production in Israel
These algae can be produced, and
are, in open ponds, e.g. Cyanotech
or in closed photobioreactors such
as these. PBRs have advantages,
but much more expensive (>10x)

Most R&D is now on

PBRs and several
commercial systems
established...
Commercial Photobioreactor in Germany
For Chlorella produciton.
Over $10million/hectare!
Went broke in short order
Commercial Photobioreactors in Spain (1989)

For Dunaliella pro

Operated for <2 w
before process fa
U.S. Dept. Energy
Aquatic Species
Program (ASP)
.
The ASP also started
out with a PBR
design as its amin
initial focus.....
Patented
closed PBR (L.
Raymond 1st
ASP PM)
Claims: very
high yields
>100t/ha-y,
flashing
light effect, oil
content
~40%, etc.
Ed Laws at U.
Hawaii showed
not so. ASP
then went to
open ponds
This paper written in response to many claims that
closed photobioreactors were superior to open
ponds. Pointed out some of the problems faced by
both open ponds and closed PBRs.
 Open Ponds vs. Closed Photobioreactors
Parameter Relative Note

Contamination risk Ponds > PBRs Just a matter of time for either
Space required Ponds ~ PBRs A matter of productivity
Productivity Ponds ~ PBRs NO substantial difference
except at low temperatures
Water losses Evaporative cooling needed
Ponds ~ PBRs
CO2 losses PBRs Depends on pH, alkalinity, etc.
Ponds ~
O2 Inhibition O2 greater problem in PBRs
Ponds < PBRs
Process Control Ponds ~ PBRs no major differences (weather)
Biomass Concentration Ponds < PBRs function of depth, 2 -10 fold
Capital/Operating Costs Ponds << PBRs Ponds 10 -100 x lower cost!
CONCLUSION: Photobioreactors better than ponds? Sometimes
but advantages way overstated. For biofuels can’t afford PBRs
 Eni Project (Monterotondo, Italy)
Compared PBRs & ponds using flue gas CO2
 Photosynthetic Efficiencies in the Ponds and
Photobioreactors
Photobioreactors (30%
(30% dilution/day)
dilution/day)
Conclusion: No difference in productivity between them
kcal biomass/kcal solar photons (%)

Total moles photons (PAR)/m

20.00 70.00
18.00

16.00
50.00

/day
2
14.00 30.00
12.00

10.00
10.00
-
8.00

6.00 -

4.00

-50.00

2.00
0.00 -70.00

08-Jun 18-Jul 27-Aug 06-Oct 15-Nov

09-Apr 19-May 28-Jun 07-Aug 16-Sep 26-Oct

Tetraselmis time (days)
suecica
pond 1 reactor 3 radiation
Typical High Rate Pond Design
This is the basic way to grow
algae nothing better/cheaper
now available for biofuels
production
 MICROALGAE PILOT PONDS IN ROSSWEL, NEW MEXICO MEXICO

for Microalgae Production (J. Weissman, P.I., Microbial

Microbial

Products, Inc., 1989-1990 – DOE

DOE NREL ASP Project)
Project)

Outgassing a major issue if

outside defined paramters
of alkalinity and pH
 CO2 Mass Transfer Coefficients in Roswell
Roswell

Ponds (from Weissman et al., 1990)

1990)

Depth Velocity kL Surface

cm cm/sec cm/sec Renewal, sec

10 10 3.9 x 10-4 150

10 30 1.4 x 10-3 12

30 10 2.2 x 10-4 480

30 30 0.8 x 10-3 37

Efficient CO2 use at <30 cm depth, <30 cm/sec velocity

Cyclotella mass cultured by
Weissman et al. in open
ponds.
ROTIFERS (ALGAE GRAZER] – another challenge
ASP Production of Microalgae for Fuels
Fuel
Conception of microalgae biodiesel production Aquatic Species Program,
U.S. DOE NREL 1987. Note raceway growth and settling-harvesting ponds
Techno-economic analyses of microalgae biofuels
biofuels

Benemann, J.R., P. Persoff, W.J. Oswald, 1978 Cost Analysis of

Algae Biomass Systems (“100 Square Mile System”) U.S. DOE
Benemann, J.R., R.P. Goebel, R.P., J.C. Weissman, and D. C.
Augenstein 1982. Microalgae as a source of liquid fuels. Final
technical Report to U.S.DOE BER
Weissman, J.C., and R.P. Goebel, 1987. Design and analysis of
microalgal open pond systems for the purpose of producing
fuels: A subcontract report US DOE- SERI
Benemann, J.R. and W.J., Oswald 1996, Systems and economic
analysis of microalgae ponds for conversion of CO2 to
biomass. Final eport. US DOE-NETL
NOTE: these reports do not conclude that we can produce algae oil,
they define long-term research needed to develop such processes
Perspective of microalgae production now
 ALGAL LIPID (OIL) CONTENT SOME OLD DATA
NS=N Sufficient, ND=N Deficient; [# ] No. days of batch growth

However: high oil content does NOT mean high oil productivity!
 THE ALLURE OF MICROALGAE BIODIESEL
Oil yields liters/ha-yr barrels/ha-yr
Soybeans 400 2.5
Sunflower 800 5
Canola 1,600 10
Jathropha 2,000 12
Palm Oil 6,000 36
Microalgae 60,000-240,000* 360 -1500*
*Projected high yield (by GreenFuel Technologies)
is ~2 x theoretical efficiency (~22,000 gal/acre-yr).
Low is maximum yield projected for long-term R&D
Near-term (5 yrs?) productivity is perhaps half this!
Microalgae Biodiesel – Reality Check .
GreenFuel Technologies 2007
U.S. DOE- NREL Their own Seambiotics/
Aquatic Species algae/lab Inventure
Program ~1987
Dec 2005: 1st Car in world to run Algae Biodiesel
~10/90 algae biodiesel/soy biodiesel >1500 km
1st car in world fueled with algae biodiesel
Dunaliella salina b-carotene production
ponds, India, source of the algae oil used
D. salina oil extraction systems
1st Production of Microalgae Biodiesel - Dec 2005
2005

Ramin Yazdani (Davis, CA) with sample of the

~1 barrel B10 algae biodiesel he made in his
backyard refinery
from a Dunaliella
salina extract John
Benemann supplied
 Near-term Algae Biodiesel: as co-product from
Wastewater treatment (Napa, CA, Ponds ~ 300 ac)

Åme in 1974
 St Helena,
California
Wastewater
Treatment
Ponds

High RateÆ
Ponds
 BIOFLOCCULATION OF MICROACTINIUM
MICROACTINIUM

these spontaneously forming flocs settle rapidly for low-

low-

cost harvesting a key issue in mass culture of microalgae

microalgae

Mechanism of Bioflocculation of Micractinium

Paddle Wheels at existing WWT Ponds, a site for
planned technology demonstration project
See Presentation by Tryg Lundquist for details
 R & D TARGETS
• Isolate/select algal strains for mass cultures

• Manage ponds for algal species and culture stability

• Maximize overall algal biomass productivity

• Maximize C-storage products and co-products

• Demonstrate large-scale, low cost algal cultivation

• Develop low cost harvesting technologies

• Processing for biofuels and higher value co-products.

• Demonstrate waste treatment - nutrient recovery

Mutants of Cyclotella with reduced Antenna Size
Polle, Weissman, et al.
 SOME CONCLUSIONS
CONCLUSIONS

1. The problem is not making oil from algae, it is

making algae with oil, actually it’s just making algae
2. Need to improve current best commercial practice
and technology by over a factor of ten
3. There are many problems, and many, many claims
to solutions. No universal, only specific, solutions
4. Example: harvesting is species specific, not generic

5. We MUST develop high productivity strains

6. Photobioreactors limited to inoculum production
7. Wastewater treatment is the near-term application
Microalgae Biofixation Network - Members

CGTEE and Eletrobrás (Brazil)

ONGC and TERI (India)
NIWA, NZ SRI International (USA)

PNNL (Pacific Northwest National Laboratory)

Laboratory)

 FINAL THOUGHTS
THOUGHTS

• “The successful growth of algae is more or less an art

and a daily tightrope act with the aim of keeping the
necessary prerequisites and various unpredictable events
involved in algal mass cultivation in a sort of balance”
(Wolfgang Becker, posted at commercial production plant)

• “The advantage of biofuels and other renewable energy

sources is that they will be so scarce and expensive that
we will need to use them very frugally instead of wasting
them wantonly as we do now with fossil fuels, and would
with nuclear energy” (John Benemann).